Lagerstroemia plant named ‘Strawconbel’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct variety of Lagerstroemia plant, referred to by its cultivar name, ‘Strawconbel’, is disclosed. The new variety forms attractive red colored flowers. Attractive, medium green colored foliage is formed. The growth habit is compact and low-mounded. The new variety is well suited for providing attractive ornamentation in the landscape.

Botanical/commercial classification:

Latin name: Lagerstroemia indica.

Varietal denomination: ‘Strawconbel’.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The new variety of Lagerstroemia indica plant originated in a controlledbreeding program in Earleville, Md. during 2016. The objective of thebreeding program was the development of a series of Lagerstroemiacultivars having abundant inflorescences with attractive flowercoloration, compact growth habits, and good disease resistance. The newcultivar was created by open pollination. The female parent (i.e., theseed parent) was the ‘Twilight’ variety (non-patented). The male parent(i.e., the pollen parent) was unknown.

The parentage of the new variety can be summarized as follows:‘Twilight’ x unknown variety

The new cultivar was discovered and selected as a single flowering plantfrom the progeny resulting from the above open pollination during August2017 in a controlled environment in Earleville, Md. Selective studyresulted in the identification of a single plant of the new variety.

It was found that the new variety of Lagerstroemia plant of the presentinvention:

-   -   (a) forms red colored flowers,    -   (b) displays medium green colored foliage, and    -   (c) exhibits a moderately vigorous, compact, and low-mounded        growth habit.

The new variety well meets the needs of the horticultural industry. Itcan be grown to advantage as ornamentation in parks, gardens, publicareas, and in residential settings. Accordingly, the plant isparticularly well suited for growing in the landscape.

The new variety of the present invention can readily be distinguishedfrom its ancestors. More specifically, the ‘Twilight’ variety (i.e., theseed parent) displays purple colored flowers and an upright growthhabit, whereas the new variety provides red colored flowers and acompact and low-mounded growth habit. Moreover, the new variety can alsobe distinguished from other similar varieties that are commerciallyavailable. For instance, the new variety of the present invention canreadily be distinguished from the ‘Cherry Mocha’ variety (U.S. PlantPat. No. 28,281), as the new cultivar produces more flowers per plantand a more compact growth habit compared to the ‘Cherry Mocha’ varietyand the new cultivar displays green colored foliage, whereas the ‘CherryMocha’ variety displays burgundy colored foliage.

The new variety has been found to undergo asexual propagation byterminal stem cuttings. Asexual propagation by terminal stem cuttings inCochranville, Pa. since August 2017 has shown that the characteristicsof the new variety are stable and are strictly transmissible by suchasexual propagation from one generation to another. Accordingly, the newvariety undergoes asexual propagation in a true-to-type manner.

The new variety has been named ‘Strawconbel’.

The new variety was first offered for sale on Jan. 8, 2020 at Baltimore,Md. by the inventor or by another who obtained the new variety directlyor indirectly from the inventor. The new variety was also offered forsale in the “SHRUBS VINES TREES EVERGREENS EDIBLES” 2021 Star® Roses andPlants Catalog, which was published on Feb. 23, 2020 by the inventor orby another who obtained the new variety directly or indirectly from theinventor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS

The accompanying photographs show as nearly true as it is reasonablypossible to make the same, in a color illustration of this character,typical specimens of the plant and plant parts of the new variety.Colors in the photographs may differ slightly from the color valuescited in the detailed description, which accurately describes the colorsof the ‘Strawconbel’ variety. The plants were finished plants floweringin June 2019 and grown inside in one-gallon containers for atCochranville, Pa.

FIG. 1—illustrates a specimen of the plant displaying the overall growthand flowering habit—side view.

FIG. 2—illustrates a specimen of an individual inflorescence.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The chart used in the identification of the colors is that of The RoyalHorticultural Society (R.H.S. Color Chart), 2015 edition, London,England. The terminology which precedes reference to the chart has beenadded to indicate the corresponding color in more common terms. Thecolor values were determined in April 2021 under natural lightconditions in Cochranville, Pa.

The following descriptions and measurements describe approximatelyone-year plants produced from cuttings from stock plants and grown underconditions comparable to those used in commercial nursery production.Plants were grown outdoors under standard nursery practices during the2020 growing season and then moved into a greenhouse in January 2021 andgrown for four months in Cochranville, Pa. Measurements and numericalvalues represent averages of tygical plants.

-   Parentage:    -   -   Female parent.—‘Twilight’ (non-patented).        -   Male parent.—Unknown.-   Propagation:    -   -   Type cutting.—Terminal cuttings.        -   Time to initiate roots.—Approximately 16 days.        -   Time to produce.        -   A rooted cutting.—Approximately 39 days.        -   Root description.—Fibrous and fine; white to brown in color.        -   Rooting habit.—Freely branching; dense.-   Plant:    -   -   Growth habit and general appearance.—Multistemmed deciduous            shrub, moderately vigorous and compact, low, mounding growth            habit.        -   Size.—Height from soil level to top of plant plane:            approximately 34.0 cm.        -   —Width: approximately 43.0 cm.        -   Branching habit.—Freely branching; pinching enhances            branching.        -   —Quantity of lateral branches per plant: approximately 5            main stems per plant with approximately 5 lateral branches            per stem.        -   Trunk—Diameter at soil level: approximately 6.0 mm.        -   —Diameter at midpoint: approximately 3.0 mm.        -   —texture: woody, slight exfoliation with age.        -   —color: commonly near Brown Group 200A.        -   Branch.—Shape: quadrangulate with rounded wings.        -   —Strength: strong.        -   —Arrangement: subopposite to alternate.        -   —Aspect: erect to 45° angle from main stem.        -   —Length to base of inflorescence: approximately 17.0 cm to            22.0 cm.        -   —Diameter: approximately 3.0 mm.        -   —Length of central internode: approximately 2.5 cm.        -   —Texture of young stem: glabrous.        -   —Texture of mature stem: woody, rough.        -   —Color of young stem: commonly near Red-Purple Group 60C.        -   —Color of mature stem: commonly near Brown Group 200A.-   Foliage:    -   -   General sescription.—Form: simple.        -   —Arrangement: subopposite to alternate.        -   —Fragrance: none detected.        -   Leaves.—Shape: ovate to elliptic.        -   —Margin: entire.        -   —Apex: cuspidate.        -   —Base: attenuate.        -   —Venation pattern: pinnate.        -   —Length of mature leaf: approximately 4.0 cm.        -   —Width of mature leaf: approximately 2.5 cm.        -   —Texture of upper and lower surfaces: glabrous.        -   —Color of upper surface of young foliage: commonly near            Green Group 137C with venation color of commonly near Green            Group 137D.        -   —Color of lower surface of young foliage: commonly near            Green Group 138B with venation color of commonly near Green            Group 138C.        -   —Color of upper surface of mature foliage: commonly near            Green Group 137A with venation color of commonly near Green            Group 137B.        -   —Color of lower surface of mature foliage: commonly near            Green Group 138B with venation color of commonly near Green            Group 138D.        -   Petiole.—Length: approximately 2.0 mm.        -   —Diameter: approximately 3.0 mm.        -   —Texture: Glabrous.        -   —Color: commonly near Greyed-Orange Group 176B.-   Flowering Description:    -   -   Flowering season.—Flowers in mid-summer through early fall.        -   Lastingness of individual inflorescence on the            plant.—Approximately 1 to 2 weeks.        -   General description.—Type:panicle, flowers self-cleaning.        -   —Quantity per plant: approximately 20.        -   —Fragrance: faint sweet.        -   —Aspect: upward to outward.        -   —Height: approximately 7.0 cm.        -   —Width: approximately 8.0 cm.        -   —Quantity of flowers per inflorescence: approximately 20.        -   Peduncle.—Strength: strong.        -   —Shape: rounded.        -   —Aspect: erect to about 45° from branch axis.        -   —Length: approximately 1.0 cm.        -   —Diameter: approximately 2.0 mm.        -   —Texture: glabrous.        -   —Color: commonly near Red-Purple Group 59C.-   Flower:    -   -   Bud just before opening.—Shape: globose.        -   —Length: approximately 6.0 mm.        -   —Diameter: approximately 6.0 mm.        -   —Color: commonly near Red-Purple Group 59D.        -   Corolla.—Shape: rotate.        -   —Depth: approximately 1.0 cm.        -   —Diameter: approximately 3.0 cm.        -   Petals.—Shape: ovate.        -   —Margin: crisped, undulating.        -   —Apex: acute.        -   —Base: truncate.        -   —Length: approximately 1.5 cm.        -   —Width: approximately 1.1 cm.        -   —Texture of upper and lower surfaces: glabrous.        -   —Color of upper and lower surfaces: commonly near            Purple-Violet Group N80A.        -   Calyx.—Shape: round.        -   —Depth: approximately 6.0 mm.        -   —Diameter: approximately 6.0 mm.        -   Sepals.—Shape: triangular.        -   —Margin: smooth, entire.        -   —Apex: acute.        -   —Base: truncate.        -   —Length: approximately 3.0 mm.        -   —Width: approximately 3.0 mm.        -   —Texture of upper surface: glabrous.        -   —Texture of lower surface: glabrous.        -   —Color of upper surface: commonly near Red-Purple Group 59C.        -   —Color of lower surface: commonly near Yellow-Green Group            149D.        -   Pedicel.—Strength: strong.        -   —Aspect: erect, to about 45° from peduncle.        -   —Length: approximately 6.0 mm.        -   —Diameter: approximately 1.5 mm.        -   —Texture: glabrous.        -   —Color: commonly near Red-Purple Group 59C.        -   Reproductive organs.—Androecium:        -   Stamen quantity per flower: approximately 30 to 36.        -   Stamen length: approximately 9.5 mm.        -   Filament color: commonly near Red-Purple Group 62A.        -   Anther shape: narrow oblong, dorsifixed.        -   Anther length: approximately 8.0 mm.        -   Anther color: commonly near Yellow-Orange Group 14B.        -   Pollen amount: abundant.        -   Pollen color: commonly near Yellow-Orange Group 14B.        -   Gynoecium:        -   Pistil quantity per flower: 1.        -   Pistil length: approximately 1.6 cm.        -   Stigma shape: rounded.        -   Stigma color: commonly near Green Group 133A.        -   Style length: approximately 1.3 cm.        -   Style color: commonly near Red-Purple Group 59C.        -   Ovary length: approximately 3.0 mm.        -   Ovary color: commonly near Yellow Group 3A.        -   —Seed and fruit production: neither seed nor fruit            production has been observed to date.-   Development:    -   -   Disease and pest resistance.—Resistance to pathogens and            pests common to Langerstroemia has not been observed to            date.        -   Commercial crop time.—Approximately 15 weeks from a rooted            cutting to finish in a 19.0 cm pot.        -   Hardiness.—USDA Zone 6b (−5° F.).        -   Heat tolerance.—Regularly tolerates temperatures as high as            38.3° C. (101° F.) in the summer.

The new ‘Strawconbel’ variety has not been observed under all possibleenvironmental conditions to date. Accordingly, it is possible that thephenotypic expression may vary somewhat with changes in light intensityand duration, cultural practices, and other environmental conditions,without, however, any variance in genotype.

I claim:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Lagerstroemia plantcharacterized by the following combination of characteristics: (a) formsred colored flowers, (b) displays medium green colored foliage, and (c)exhibits a moderately vigorous, compact, low-mounded growth habit;substantially as herein shown and described.